Happy Fall Y’all!

Remember the other day when it was summer? And it was really really hot, and swimming was a necessity, and sweating was normal? And remember when football season was just around the corner, and it was almost time for the leaves to turn colors, and cooling off just a hint was just a daydream? Well, I am happy to say it is no longer a daydream – not even in Florida. Fall is HERE!

Thank goodness!

I LOVE this time of year when you can bring a jacket along where ever you go, just in case. I love the sounds of crackling leaves and crackling fires. I especially love hearing football on the TV while a fresh breeze comes through the open windows. Sigh. Love it.

Fall also reminds me that the holidays are near, and I find myself thinking of my wonderful family members that I am so blessed to be related to. I don’t live near any of them, but luckily they’ve passed great ideas and traditions on to me that I can recreate for my own little family. These traditions are some of the things that make my house feel like a home.

My sweet mother-in-law taught me a quick, easy and inexpensive way to make my house smell fresh, homey and fallish. She puts a small pot of water on low heat on the stove. Then she squeezes half of an orange into the pot and adds the orange, a few shakes of cloves, a cinnamon stick (or ground cinnamon), and a little nutmeg.

The mixture can simmer most of the day, and as the water evaporates, more can be added. I love the way this smells like a pumpkin pie is baking, and I’m not gonna lie: When this aroma fills my home, I often forget that today isn’t Thanksgiving day (which is a little funny when it’s the middle of October).

By the wonderful grace of God I have been blessed with THE BEST grandparents E.V.E.R. So much so that many of my friends and other relatives not related to them have adopted my grandparents as their own. I big fat love them with all my heart. My sweet grandpa loves football, and he and my dad (smooches, Dad!) watch football together. They’ve passed down their love of the game to me, and I appreciate a good game (even if I don’t understand some of it). Hook’em Horns!

My grandpa is a big eggnog fan, and he and I are among the crazies that need eggnog like we need water…at least until January when the cruel eggnog people quit selling it. I found eggnog in Target the other day and had to call Grandpa on the phone to tell him “Happy Eggnog Day.” It’s going to be a great couple of months…but not necessarily for my waistline.

My cute grandma has been making caramel apples for YEARS. I can’t remember a Halloween that she hasn’t made them, although I realized the other day that I’ve never actually seen her make them. The yummy apples just magically appear on her counter on Halloween day, and you better not pass one up – it’ll be your loss.

I haven’t ever made caramel apples, so I called her to get a few tips. Grandma saves time by buying the store caramels and puts them in the microwave for a few minutes. She makes sure to have some wax paper down so the apples won’t stick to the tray.

Here are my first caramel apples:

I used kabob sticks instead of craft sticks because I had them on hand. The green apple is for me because I prefer them to red. I made the executive decision to roll two apples in Oreo crumbs for The Hubs and myself. WOW. That was a great choice.

Making caramel apples was much simpler and easier than I thought it would be. It is similar to making chocolate covered strawberries.

Hmmmm. Chocolate caramel strawberries…interesting. I may have to try it.

My cute mom is a fantastic cook, and she is famous for her chocolate chip cookies. Seriously addicting. My mom makes yummy pies for Thanksgiving, too, including pumpkin pie. But I am such a weirdo – I don’t like pumpkin pie. I don’t. Although I try to like it each year, I can’t stand the texture. The flavor is yummy, though, so I’ll eat pumpkin ice cream and shakes. So, taking a cue from my moms cookies and pies, I thought I’d make some pumpkin ice cream sandwiches.

Although the cookies aren’t from scratch like my mom’s, I think they taste AWESOME! I baked pre-made cookie dough with cute ghosties on them and let them cool. This is important because ice cream will be going in between them! Once the cookies cooled, I added a large spoonful of pumpkin pie ice cream, squished them together, and put them on a plate. The plate was then put in the coldest part of my freezer until they hardened. When they were ready to eat – man, what a yummy little snack.

So even though I don’t get to be around some of my favorite people right now, I am happy that I can use a few of their ideas and traditions in my home. It makes the miles feel just a little closer.

I am loving this time of year! Happy Fall Y’all!!!

Comments

the cape on the corner says:

October 27, 2010 at 7:25 pm

um, excuse me, yes! the addition of oreos, much like bacon, or cheese, is a wonderful idea! look soooo good!

so glad you stopped by the cape on the corner-weren't those pumpkins insane? glad you liked them, that one with the arm is my favorite!

Reeta says:

November 2, 2010 at 5:48 am

After reading this entry I took Claire to the store to buy caramel apple fixin's. They turned out delicious! I used chopped pecans instead of Oreos so they weren't quite as decadent as yours, but still very tasty. Thanks for the reminder that caramel apples are one of those great Halloween treats from our childhood! I still remember eating them in Grandma's kitchen.